NPA briefed the UN Security Council

The debate was arranged under the presidency of the Government of Vietnam, and Linh had the honour of speaking alongside UN Secretary-General António Guterres and Daniel Craig, the Global Advocate for the Elimination of Mines and Explosive Hazards.

This is a very proud day for everyone in NPA as well as for Linh, who's grown from a young translator back in 2009, to later NPA Vietnam’s Operations Manager and now to Quang Tri Provincial Programme Manager. In her current role, she oversees nearly 300 staff who conduct survey and clearance of explosive ordnance every day across Quang Tri province.

I hope mine action remains on the agenda of the international community, and that the recommendations I have made are well considered, so that all people in affected countries can live safely and development is not constrained by explosive ordnance.

Based on her 12 years of experience in mine action in Quang Tri province, Linh made the following recommendations to the UN Security Council last night:

1. National capacity and national ownership should be increased to ensure the long-term success and sustainability of mine action results. Leadership from local government and national ownership of mine action results is crucial.
2. National and international mine action stakeholders should coordinate closely to ensure the effectiveness of mine action operations. The partnership model in Quang Tri is an outstanding example of what can be achieved when mine action is coordinated well, communication is frequent between all stakeholders, data is shared openly, and everyone works towards a common goal.
3. The involvement of women in all aspects of mine action should be promoted and increased. Women working for mine action organisations in Vietnam have shown that they can do this work just as well as men, and that women have an important and necessary role to play in mine action and in the larger peace and security agenda.

“I hope mine action remains on the agenda of the international community, and that the recommendations I have made are well considered, so that all people in affected countries can live safely and development is not constrained by explosive ordnance,” Linh said.

NPA would like to take this opportunity to thank our donors from the government of the United States, Norway and United Kingdom for their continuing support for NPA Vietnam, and for their ongoing commitment to putting mine action on the international agenda.